Matt Maher: Aston Villa victory is the perfect response to Euro setback

It wasn’t perfect but against an expensively assembled yet distinctly average Chelsea, it didn’t need to be.

Villa rode their luck at times, were indebted to Emi Martinez for several key saves but also had no shortage of the grit and spirit perhaps absent in those heavy defeats at Newcastle and Liverpool.

Thursday’s loss at Legia Warsaw had reopened questions about Villa’s fortitude away from home and so this win, which came with the season’s first clean sheet on the road, can only be seen as an impressive response and encouraging step forward.

The fact Villa remain far from the finished article is perhaps the biggest cause for cheer. Emery later described his team as remaining “under construction” – a more than fair comment considering the summer recruitment and subsequent reshuffle caused by cruel long-term injuries to Emi Buendia and Tyrone Mings. A return of four wins from the opening six league matches and a place in the top six of the table is, therefore, a more than handy foundation to build on.

Every match in the early part of a season can feel like a mood changer, even more so when you have a fixture list as busy as Villa’s. After Thursday’s defeat had seen Emery receive some of the harshest criticism since taking charge last November, this felt a significant result, a big test passed as Villa’s players dealt with the quick shift from European to domestic competition.

They were helped, it must be said, by their rather lacklustre hosts. Wins at Stamford Bridge are no longer quite the achievement they were even 18 months ago and Mauricio Pochettino’s young team lacked poise. With half-an-hour to go and the match very much in the balance were reduced to 10-men when Malo Gusto went in studs up on Lucas Digne and having initially been shown a yellow card was dismissed following a VAR check.

Even then you wondered whether Villa could force a victory but with 17 minutes remaining Ollie Watkins delivered his first Premier League goal of the season to break the deadlock. Racing on to Moussa Diaby’s pass, the striker saw his first effort blocked by a sliding Levi Colwill but hammered the second beyond Robert Sanchez and in off the far post.

It was Watkins’ first and only chance of the afternoon and in a match where he was otherwise on the fringes showed precisely the kind of ruthless streak to which he aspires. With fellow forward Jhon Duran having sparked into life and pushing for more game time, it felt a rather timely reminder of just why Watkins remains Villa’s main man up front.

Villa had previously gone close through Lucas Digne and Nicolo Zaniolo, who were both denied in spectacular fashion by Sanchez in the opening half.

The Chelsea keeper would also save from Jacob Ramsey as Villa looked to make the points safe in the closing stages but otherwise this was a win built, like so many last season under Emery, from the back with Martinez and the centre-back pairing of Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres worthy of particular praise.

For Konsa, this was a much better performance to celebrate a new five-year contract than the one in Warsaw, while Torres also looked solid after an early miscue almost saw him gift Mykhailo Mudryk a golden chance.

When Villa’s defence was beaten, Chelsea found Martinez in terrific form. The Argentina World Cup winner first denied Nico Jackson one-on-one in the first half before then repeating the trick to thwart Sterling, after the visitors had made a rather sluggish start to the second period.

His most important save then came immediately after Watkins’ goal. Ben Chilwell got in behind and bore down on goal but Martinez guessed correctly by throwing himself to his right to save the shot. Chelsea would not get a better chance to equalise, even through the 12 minutes of stoppage time found by referee Jarred Gillett.

So consistent is Martinez it can be easy to take his performances for granted but this was arguably the second weekend running when he was Villa’s man-of-the-match, having made several crucial saves in the 3-1 win over Crystal Palace.

Here Villa’s defence was provided added protection by Boubacar Kamara, who shook off some uncertain recent showings by providing his strongest performance of the season to date. It was the France international who bailed out Torres by jumping in front of Mudryk, while he provided an even more impressive moment later in the first half when stealing the ball from Sterling with almost sarcastic ease, just as the England ace looked set to break through on goal.

Villa now return home for Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie with Everton, the first of two home matches in four days. There is little time to rest yet, for the most part, the outlook is positive.